On Sunday, the Indian cricket team completely outplayed the Pakistan team at Edgbaston. With the 124–run victory, India has announced themselves on the big stage of ICC Champions Trophy 2017.
Indian had started on a winning note of their pursuit of defending their title, which they had won in Champions Trophy 2013.Here are some of the areas where India capitalized more as compared to Pakistan:
Use of Conditions
Indian openers Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan anchored their innings well with a slow and matured start to tackle the tricky Edgbaston conditions. Except for some initial overs, they never looked uncomfortable in their innings and were aided by some lazy Pakistani fielding. They kept on capitalizing the loose balls and put on a masterful display till Dhawan was dismissed. Indian skipper Virat Kohli also played an invaluable supporting role for Yuvraj and Rohit while taking his time to get going. He provided the fireworks at the end along with Hardik Pandya.
2. Sensible Batting
Undoubtedly, it was pretty clear that the Pakistan had shown their inability to bat sensibly. Once again, in a chase that required power-hitting, they were building pressure on themselves. Eventually, their incompetence to convert singles and their inclination to play needless shots caused their downfall. However, the Indian batsmen managed to get those crucial 1’s and 2’s to keep the scoreboard ticking and hit the bad balls as hard as possible.
3. Genuine all-rounders in Indian team
Indian all-rounders, Ravindra Jadeja and Hardik Pandya did a commendable job, not only with their bat and ball but also with brilliant fielding skills. Pandya proved his finishing capabilities with three consecutive sixes in the final over that was followed by a flourish by Kohli. Jadeja kept on stopping runs by his tight bowling and some excellent fielding. He also picked a couple of wickets. India just had the edge when it came to all-rounders.
4. Accessing rain conditions
Each time there was a break due to the rain, India managed to re-compose themselves and come back stronger. Pakistan was just not able to build any sort of momentum and barring Azhar Ali, none of the batsmen looked very comfortable in the middle. India was just the better team in all departments and deserve the points they are taking home.
